in vipassana as i understand there is no direct method of meditating on the mind object, and the way vipassana approaches to mind meditation is during mediation on physical object like body or abdomen when a gross mind state like greed or torpor appears and meditator notes that. so there is no direct method of mind object meditation? or there is and that is calm abiding? i remember that there was a huge topic about calm abiding in in esangha.

If you have asked me of the origination of unease, then I shall explain it to you in accordance with my understanding: Whatever various forms of unease there are in the world, They originate founded in encumbering accumulation. (Pārāyanavagga)

Exalted in mind, just open and clearly aware, the recluse trained in the ways of the sages:One who is such, calmed and ever mindful, He has no sorrows! -- Udana IV, 7

Hi EffortMy primary object is vedana and sometimes I switch to citta. I remember my teacher saying a couple of years ago during retreat that by observing vedana one was also observing the mind the reason being that all but four classes of cittas co-arise with vedana. For me personally, I find cittanupassana too ephemeral for daily practice and I find I benefit more with something more earthy - hence vedananupassana.All the best.

Ben

Learn this from the waters:in mountain clefts and chasms,loud gush the streamlets,but great rivers flow silently.

effort wrote:retro, but i didnt heard anytime that a teacher instructing sit and look at your 5 kinds of consciousness, or mental qualities directly ( something like what they do in vedana)

Well that's where what teachers teach, differs from what the Buddha taught, isn't it?

Metta,Retro.

If you have asked me of the origination of unease, then I shall explain it to you in accordance with my understanding: Whatever various forms of unease there are in the world, They originate founded in encumbering accumulation. (Pārāyanavagga)

Exalted in mind, just open and clearly aware, the recluse trained in the ways of the sages:One who is such, calmed and ever mindful, He has no sorrows! -- Udana IV, 7

you know retro, it is really strange for me that in some sects ( other than theravada ) they emphasize on merely sitting and being aware of your current mind, and in theravada there is no instruction at all for this(almost) or if there is i dont know.

bhikkhu khemavamsa has a book about cittanupassana and thats the only one that i saw directly pointing to that, but interestingly he is a theravadian.

i think the first hand experiment for the teachers in theravada comes from ajahn lee or around that time till now( and there is a huge gap into real practice till almost 150-200 years ago), and during this period of time the most influential teachers were mostly focusing on veddana because they didnt had a reliable teachers to teach them directly other aspects of nupassana, so because of this there is not so many different approaches in theravada.

i mean its not fair becuase as long as i observe breath i loss my mind balance, my hearth rate, over breathing and many others problems but i can sit and look to mind( i know this is not like arising and passing away,and mostly like i, self, consciousness) and there must be a way that i( or people who are like me) can use this object to do vipassana.

Hi effortMy experience has been that when one is practicing vedananupassana for an extended period in a retreat setting, the mind becomes more sensitive and stable and one's attention can more easily switch to mind states without getting blown away or embroiled in identifying with mental content. The monkey mind is happening all the time, but as one settles into vedananupassana there is less grasping and identifying with the mind states and mental content and more observation. If you can observe the anicca characteristic (or for that matter the dukkha or anatta characteristic) of mental states, then you are practicing vipassana.It would be worthwhile checking out the section on cittanupassana in the visuddhimagga - if you have a copy.metta

Ben

Learn this from the waters:in mountain clefts and chasms,loud gush the streamlets,but great rivers flow silently.

effort wrote:you know retro, it is really strange for me that in some sects ( other than theravada ) they emphasize on merely sitting and being aware of your current mind, and in theravada there is no instruction at all for this(almost) or if there is i dont know.

"And how does a monk remain focused on the mind in & of itself? There is the case where a monk, when the mind has passion, discerns that the mind has passion. When the mind is without passion, he discerns that the mind is without passion. When the mind has aversion, he discerns that the mind has aversion. When the mind is without aversion, he discerns that the mind is without aversion. When the mind has delusion, he discerns that the mind has delusion. When the mind is without delusion, he discerns that the mind is without delusion....

Usually a teacher will have you start with one of the body contemplations (e.g. motion of the feet or the abdomen in the Mahasi school), then, once you have some calm to notice "feelings" (whether a sensation is pleasant, painful, or neutral), then progress on to looking at the mind states ("moods" is a useful rough translation, in my opinion). As Ben says, these are rather subtle, and it's hard to catch them changing, so it's something you progress to after some practise and you won't necessarily see in introductory instructions.

Hi effortSo long as one is a putthujana, delusion is present.But for practical purposes, one can know delusion is present in the mind by observing the dominant hindrance or sankhara that may be manifesting through one or more of the satipatthanas.kind regards

Ben

Learn this from the waters:in mountain clefts and chasms,loud gush the streamlets,but great rivers flow silently.

When the mind has delusion, he discerns that the mind has delusion. When the mind is without delusion, he discerns that the mind is without delusion.

how someone could know there is delusion?

A fool who knows his foolishness is wise at least to that extent, but a fool who thinks himself wise is a fool indeed. - Dhp 63

The heart of the path is SO simple. No need for long explanations. Give up clinging to love and hate, just rest with things as they are. That is all I do in my own practice. Do not try to become anything. Do not make yourself into anything. Do not be a meditator. Do not become enlightened. When you sit, let it be. When you walk, let it be. Grasp at nothing. Resist nothing. Of course, there are dozens of meditation techniques to develop samadhi and many kinds of vipassana. But it all comes back to this - just let it all be. Step over here where it is cool, out of the battle. - Ajahn Chah

You can pretty much assume there is always going to be a measure of delusion present, so you can be open to observe it all the time. There is going to be a delay, sometimes a long delay before you really see it for what it is, when you do see it for what it is then that's wisdom and you have to opprtunity to let go.

Other teaches tend to teach it after you've had a good grounding in other foundations of mindfulness, so just because it's not immediately apparent that they teach it doesn't mean they don't.I think it's a difficult practice unless you've had a good grounding in other foundations of mindfulness first.

"Proper effort is not the effort to make something particular happen. It is the effort to be aware and awake each moment." - Ajahn Chah"When we see beyond self, we no longer cling to happiness. When we stop clinging, we can begin to be happy." - Ajahn Chah"Know and watch your heart. It’s pure but emotions come to colour it." — Ajahn Chah

what is delusion? I have always found this list helpful (vipallasa -perversions)1) thinking the impermanent is permanent2) thinking the unsatisfactory is satisfactory3) thinking the not-self is self4) thinking the unwholesome is wholesome

you can do both body/breath and mind mindfulness at different times. They will support each other.

If i misunderstood please give me the explanation, But In Thai, we didn't use the word like "Mind Object"because the definition of the word "Object" :"An object is anything that has a fixed shape or form, that you can touch or see"It totally differ from the qualification of mind.

"And how does a monk remain focused on the mind in & of itself? There is the case where a monk, when the mind has passion, discerns that the mind has passion. When the mind is without passion, he discerns that the mind is without passion. When the mind has aversion, he discerns that the mind has aversion. When the mind is without aversion, he discerns that the mind is without aversion. When the mind has delusion, he discerns that the mind has delusion. When the mind is without delusion, he discerns that the mind is without delusion.

"When the mind is constricted, he discerns that the mind is constricted. When the mind is scattered, he discerns that the mind is scattered. When the mind is enlarged, he discerns that the mind is enlarged. When the mind is not enlarged, he discerns that the mind is not enlarged. When the mind is surpassed, he discerns that the mind is surpassed. When the mind is unsurpassed, he discerns that the mind is unsurpassed. When the mind is concentrated, he discerns that the mind is concentrated. When the mind is not concentrated, he discerns that the mind is not concentrated. When the mind is released, he discerns that the mind is released. When the mind is not released, he discerns that the mind is not released.

"In this way he remains focused internally on the mind in & of itself, or externally on the mind in & of itself, or both internally & externally on the mind in & of itself. Or he remains focused on the phenomenon of origination with regard to the mind, on the phenomenon of passing away with regard to the mind, or on the phenomenon of origination & passing away with regard to the mind. Or his mindfulness that 'There is a mind' is maintained to the extent of knowledge & remembrance. And he remains independent, unsustained by (not clinging to) anything in the world. This is how a monk remains focused on the mind in & of itself.

I agree that "mind object" isn't a particularly good translation - "quality of mind" would be better.

Metta,Retro.

If you have asked me of the origination of unease, then I shall explain it to you in accordance with my understanding: Whatever various forms of unease there are in the world, They originate founded in encumbering accumulation. (Pārāyanavagga)

Exalted in mind, just open and clearly aware, the recluse trained in the ways of the sages:One who is such, calmed and ever mindful, He has no sorrows! -- Udana IV, 7